More than 200 new homes are to be built as part of a long-awaited canalside regeneration scheme in Birmingham.

New plans have been submitted for the first phase of the Icknield Port Loop project on land at the Birmingham Canal Old Line next to Edgbaston Reservoir.

The first phase of the 43-acre redevelopment comprises 117 houses, ranging from three to five bedrooms, which will have terraces and shared residential courtyard gardens.

There will also be 90 apartments, two new public parks and canalside spaces.

A new image (below) showing how the project is expected to look has also been released by Urban Splash and Places for People, the joint venture development team which was chosen to lead the project in 2015 by landowners Birmingham City Council and charity Canal & River Trust.

Adam Willetts, senior development manager of Urban Splash, said: "This site is an amazing, if very underused, part of Birmingham with tremendous potential that, subject to planning approval, the Icknield Port Loop partnership will completely regenerate.

"These plans are ambitious and transformative and are intended to bring that land back to life, making it a sustainable and much-loved place for people to live, work and play."

CGI of the first phase of development at the Icknield Port Loop site
CGI of the first phase of development at the Icknield Port Loop site

There are also plans for a brand new leisure, sports and swimming centre for which a separate planning application has been submitted.

It was originally intended to be part of the main development site but has now been moved to a new plot close to Ladywood Fire Station, in Icknield Port Road, to allow for a larger facility with additional parking.

The centre should open by mid-2019 and will have a 25-metre pool and a range of recreational activities.

The approved masterplan for the entire Icknield Port Loop site includes up to 1,150 new homes, commercial, retail and leisure facilities.

Nigel Brewer, planning and design director with Places for People, said: "Our plans have evolved and we're very excited to be delivering a scheme that will benefit existing city residents as well as attracting new ones.

"It will put pedestrians and cyclists first, offer generous new green spaces, bring redundant parts of the canal back to life and provide new water-based activities to the area."

James Lazarus, head of property development at the Canal & River Trust, added: "The proposals are really exciting and mark the first step in a major regeneration around the canal which will ultimately open up access to a previously unseen part of our network."

Also working on the development are architecture practices Maccreanor Lavington, ShedKM and Glenn Howells Architects on the housing and landscape architects Grant Associates on the public realm designs.